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HTNG Releases EMV Hospitality White Paper

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

CHICAGO (October 7, 2015) – Hotel Technology Next Generation (HTNG) announces the release of the EMV for the US Hospitality Industry white paper, produced by the Secure Payments Framework working group. The document clears up the confusion surrounding EMV and provides hoteliers with valuable information they can use to prepare for EMV at their hotels.

New rules issued by the major card brands in the United States related to EMV technology went into effect on October 1, 2015. The rules have generated a lot of questions from hoteliers trying to understand what EMV is and what they need to do to support it. EMV refers to a set of technical specifications for processing payment transactions via smart cards (alternatively called chip cards or EMV cards). A smart card contains a chip on the card that stores the credit card information needed to process payment transactions. This data is encrypted and virtually impossible to counterfeit, making it a much more secure alternative to the traditional magnetic stripe for storing sensitive credit card information.

Larry Gorman, Senior Director, Enterprise Architecture and Research at SkyTouch Technology and Secure Payments Framework Workgroup Co-Chair said, “There’s perhaps nothing more important to hospitality than securely processing payment transactions, so this is a natural area for HTNG to focus on. The white paper provides hoteliers with crucial information needed to make the right decisions when purchasing payment-related technology, and is just one example of the important role HTNG plays in the hospitality industry.”

To encourage adoption, card brands have shifted liability to noncompliant merchants for fraudulent activity that could have been prevented with EMV. Although many of us may have heard this referred to as the “EMV mandate,” nothing is being mandated or required with this liability shift. Hoteliers can choose to pursue or not pursue EMV. Their decision will in no way impact credit card processing rates, and no fines will be levied if merchants do not accept EMV cards.

John Bell, Founder of Ajontech LLC and Co-Chair of the Secure Payments Framework Workgroup commented, “EMV is a complex topic and it is not always apparent how the move to EMV impacts the businesses in our industry. HTNG has tried to address these concerns by assembling a team of industry experts to answer the primary questions being asked by HTNG constituents. The result is a great example of how HTNG can bring hoteliers and their partners together to address and inform about technology change and its impact on our industry.”

Available to the public, the EMV For the US Hospitality Industry white paper provides full details on the rules, processes and recommendations regarding the use of EMV cards and payment terminals. To learn more about the HTNG Secure Payments Framework workgroup, visit their web page: http://htng.org/workgroups.

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About Hotel Technology Next Generation

The premier technology solutions association in the hospitality industry, HTNG is a self-funded, nonprofit organization with members from hotel and hospitality companies, technology vendors to hospitality and other industry members including consultants, media and academic experts. HTNG's members participate in focused workgroups to bring to market open solution sets addressing specific business problems. HTNG fosters the selection and adoption of existing open standards. Where necessary, it also develops new open standards to meet the needs of the global hospitality industry.

Membership in HTNG is open to hotel and hospitality companies, technology vendors to hospitality, consultants, academics, press and others. Currently more than 400 corporate and individual members from across this spectrum, including most of the world's leading hotel companies and technology vendors, are active HTNG participants. HTNG's Board of Governors, consisting of 19 top IT leaders from hotel companies around the world, itself has technology responsibility for about three million guest rooms. HTNG publishes workgroup proceedings, drafts and specifications for all HTNG members as soon as they are created, encouraging rapid and broad adoption. HTNG releases specifications into the public domain as soon as they are ratified by the workgroups. For more information, visit www.htng.org.